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Barathayudan War
The Barathayudan War was caused by a conflict between two groups of cousins of a demigod tribe called Kuru, the Kurawas and Pandawas. It is a dynastic struggle between sibling clans of Kurawas and the Pandawas for the throne of Astina resulted in a battle in which a number of kingdoms participated as allies of the rival clans. The war lasted only eighteen days during which vast armies from all over the Indian Subcontinent fought alongside the two rivals. The war took place in a chosen place called Kuruksethra, this site was chosen for the war because a sin committed on this land was forgiven on account of the sanctity of this land. Background Kuru territories were divided into two and were ruled by Destrata and Yudhishthira of the Pandawas. The immediate dispute between the Kurawas (sons of Destrata) and the Pandawas arose from a game of dice, which Duryodhana won by deceit, forcing their Pandawa cousins to transfer their entire territories to the Kurawas and to "go-into-exile" for fourteen years. The dispute escalated into a full scale war when Prince Duryodhana, the eldest of the Kurawas, driven by jealousy, refused to restore the Pandawas their territories after the exile as earlier decided, as Duryodhana objects that they were discovered while in exile, and that no return of their kingdom was agreed. Combatants Pandawa Army Seeing that there was now no hope for peace, Yudhisthira, the eldest of the Pandawas, asked his brothers to organize their army. The Pandawas accumulated seven Akshauhini army with the help of their allies.Each of these Akshauhinis or divisions were led by Drupada, Virata, Dhristadyumna, Shikhandi, Satyaki, Chekitana and Bhima. After consulting his commanders, the Pandawas appointed Dhristadyumna as the supreme commander of the Pandawa army. Kingdoms from all over ancient India supplied troops or provided logistic support on the Pandawa side. Some of these were: Kekaya, Pandya, Cholas, Keralas, Magadha, and many more. Kurawa Army The Kurawa army consisted of eleven Akshauhinis, or divisions. Duryodhana requested Bhishma to command the Kurawa army. Bhishma accepted on the condition that, while he would fight the battle sincerely, he would not harm the five Pandawa brothers. In addition, Bhishma said that Karna would not fight under him as long as he is in the battlefied. It is believed by many that Bhishma pushed Karna into taking this decision due to his affection towards the Pandawas - the Kurawas would be overwhelmingly powerful if both he and Karna appeared in battle simultaneously. However the excuse he used to prevent their simultaneous fighting was that his guru (Parshurama) was insulted by Karna. But the real fact was that Bhisma knew that Karna was a Kaunteya (Son of Kunti, the Pandawas mother) from the day he met him in Ranakshetra when Karna offered Arjuna to fight against him. Regardless, Duryodhana agreed to Bhishma's conditions and made him the supreme commander of the Kurawa army, while Karna was debarred from fighting. Apart from the one hundred Kurawa brothers, headed by Duryodhana himself and his brother Dushasana, the second eldest son of Dhritarashtra, the Kurawas were assisted on the battlefield by Drona and his son Ashwathama, the Kurawa's brother-in-law Jayadratha, Kripa, Kritavarma, Shalya, Sudakshina, Bhurisravas, Bahlika, Shakuni, and many more who were bound by their loyalty towards either Hastinapura or Destrata. Rules of engagement *Fighting must begin no earlier than sunrise and end exactly at sunset. *Multiple warriors may not attack a single warrior. *Two warriors may "duel", or engage in prolonged personal combat, only if they carry the same weapons and they are on the same mount (no mount, a horse, an elephant, or a chariot). *No warrior may kill or injure a warrior who has surrendered. *One who surrenders becomes a prisoner of war and will then be subject to the protections of a prisoner of war. *No warrior may kill or injure an unarmed warrior. *No warrior may kill or injure an unconscious warrior. *No warrior may kill or injure a person or animal not taking part in the war. *No warrior may kill or injure a warrior whose back is turned away. *No warrior may attack a woman. *No warrior may strike an animal not considered a direct threat. *The rules specific to each weapon must be followed. For example, it is prohibited to strike below the waist in mace warfare. Most of these laws were broken at least once by both sides. The Barathayudan War The War lasted eighteen days. It was fought only during daylight hours; fighting ceased at sunset. The armies met on a vast field in Kurukshetra; each day the battle was characterised by numerous individual combats, as well as mass raids against entire enemy divisions. The victor or the vanquished on each day was determined not by any territories gained, but by the body count. This was a war to the death. The victor was the survivor. Category:Canopus